Strong v. Strong, 2011 Tex. App. LEXIS 8010

Divorce and child-custody dispute between Karl A. Strong (Father) and Ada P. Strong (Mother) in Dallas, tried before the court; trial culminated in a decree appointing Mother as conservator with exclusive right to designate the child's residence; Father appeals five issues challenging continuance denial, drug-test evidence, securing medical witness, custody designation, and property division.
Trial spanned over two days; discovery was largely completed shortly before trial; the court ordered social study and considered the child's preferences and both parents' conduct, including alleged drug use and past allegations of infidelity.
Social study recommended awarding primary residence to Father but allowed modification if Mother remained drug-free for two years; the court conducted interviews and relied on the child's statements.
There was testimony about Mother's marijuana use during the marriage, with evidence of positive tests in 2007 and later assertions of drug-free status; Father raised concerns about anger and parenting, and alleged past injuries to K.
The final decree awarded Mother exclusive right to designate the child's residence and certain financial rights; Father challenges the estate division, claiming insufficient information, alleged fraud, and new-evidence issues; the court denied post-trial motions and affirmed the judgment.
The opinion affirms the trial court’s judgment on all issues.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Continuance denial challenged	Strong was denied a continuance to obtain discovery	Court acted within discretion given two-year pending case and late discovery	No reversible error; no abuse of discretion
Admission of drug-test report	Mother's drug-test report should be excluded or given limited weight	Evidence corroborates Mother’s claim of long-term drug-free status; error harmless	harmless error; no reversal of judgment
Securing witness testimony	Court should compel Dr. Autry or admit records without his appearance	Defense did not preserve error; hearsay issue with records	Issue not preserved; no reversible error on this point
Exclusive right to designate primary residence	Evidence shows Father suitable and child preferred Father	Court could prefer Mother due to past drug use, stability, and child's wishes	Court did not abuse discretion; Mother designated primary residence
Division of community estate	Mother’s retirement savings and Baton Rouge property misvalued/hidden; fraud alleged	Evidence supported fair division; no fraudulent transfers proven; new-trial motion denied	Division affirmed; no reversible error

Taherzadeh v. Ghaleh-Assadi, 108 S.W.3d 927 (Tex.App.-Dallas 2003) (continuance preservation under Rule 251; discretion of trial court)
Favaloro v. Comm'n for Lawyer Discipline, 13 S.W.3d 831 (Tex.App.-Dallas 2000) (affirms broad trial-court discretion in disciplinary contexts)
Joe v. Two Thirty Nine Joint Venture, 145 S.W.3d 150 (Tex. 2004) (abuse-of-discretion standard; deference to trial court)
Yowell v. Piper Aircraft Corp., 703 S.W.2d 630 (Tex. 1986) (abuse-of-discretion framework)
In re K.L.W., 301 S.W.3d 423 (Tex.App.-Dallas 2009) (custody decisions; framework for abuse-of-discretion review)
Moroch v. Collins, 174 S.W.3d 849 (Tex.App.-Dallas 2005) (sufficiency of evidence in custody/management decisions)
Treviño & Gonzalez Co. v. R.F. Muller Co., 949 S.W.2d 39 (Tex.App.-San Antonio 1997) (interviewing child in custody matters; evidentiary considerations)
In re P.C.S., 320 S.W.3d 525 (Tex.App.-Dallas 2010) (credibility of witnesses; appellate weight given trial court’s credibility determinations)
Jackson v. Smith, 703 S.W.2d 791 (Tex.App.-Dallas 1985) (constructive fraud presumption in community-property transfers)
Notash (In re Marriage of Notash), 118 S.W.3d 868 (Tex.App.-Texarkana 2003) (constructive fraud in transfers; community property)